Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a technology for processing moving images captured on a moving object.
Description of the Background Art
Conventionally, a drive recorder that continuously captures images of a situation in front of a vehicle and that stores image data of the captured images cyclically on a memory, is well known. The drive recorder prohibits image data recorded before and after a large acceleration caused by a sudden braking, from being overwritten to use the stored image for later verification.
Only a predetermined portion of a storage area is prohibited from being overwritten so as to ensure a cyclical storage area for the image data. Therefore, if a larger acceleration occurs, even the image data prohibited from being overwritten is overwritten with image data relating to the larger acceleration and is stored.
However, some of traffic accidents and the like are caused by vehicles without an occurrence of a large acceleration because drivers of the vehicles did not apply a sudden braking. In such a case, the recorded image data shows a moment of a traffic accident. However, since being overwritten with image data relating to occurrence of a larger acceleration, the recorded image data cannot be used for later verification.
Some among the image data cannot be used for verification even if the image data was recorded before and after occurrence of a large acceleration, due to a defect of camera installation and the like. In such a case, if the recorded image data is set as image data prohibited from being overwritten, the recorded image data unnecessarily occupies the limited storage area and thus causes a technical problem.